The Dagwood`s A Sandwich With Some Lofty Ambitions, Not To Mention Sardines

November 08, 1990|By Pat Dailey.

Several weeks ago, we printed a question from a reader: ``Is there such a thing as a Dagwood sandwich?``

In the Blondie comic strip, Blondie`s husband, Dagwood, who quite possibly was the original couch potato, concocts some pretty odd sandwiches.

Towering, lofty and always teetering on the brink of collapse, they might best be described as slapdash affairs. We never had seen a recipe and could only imagine what one might be if it did, in fact, exist.

But in almost no time, Barbara Benes, of Arlington Heights, very kindly sent an answer that we`ll accept as definitive. It seems that one of the gems in Benes` cookbook collection is ``Blondie`s Soups-Salads-Sandwiches Cookbook,`` edited by Chic Young (out-of-print), creator of the Blondie comic strip. The book begins with Dagwood`s musing on food in general but quickly zeroes in on his food of choice:

``Food is a very interesting subject. Believe it or not, gravity is what limits a sandwich`s size. For instance, take a sandwich that gets too high-the top layer always rolls off. That`s where practice and experience in building comes in. I always use a good flat matter for the top layer and make sure while I`m building to mix in a good mortar of ketchup with horseradish, mustard and mayonnaise. This makes a firmer foundation and a taller skyscraper possible. You`ll be able to do it, too, after you`ve given my special a few tries. Blondie`s book is filled with good things to eat. Sandwiches, for instance.``

Benes describes a few other recipes in the book-calf`s brain salad, for instance, and peanut and sardine sandwich-but she admits that she actually hasn`t cooked from the book.

The first sandwich recipe in the book is dated 1930, the year construction began on the Empire State Building. Thus, the skyscraper special. Clues to Dagwood`s easygoing, unflappable nature are evident in his recipe. He leaves plenty of room for improvisation and tailoring to specific tastes.

SKYSCRAPER SPECIAL

Preparation time: 10 to 20 minutes

Yield: One giant serving

Slice of buttered bread

Layer of crisp lettuce, or watercress or endive

Cold, sliced chicken, or ham or veal or pork or pot roast or turkey or cold cuts or bacon or sausage or almost anything

Q-Maybe you will explain something for me. In some recipes calling for rice, long-grain white rice is specified. Others say converted long-grain rice. What exactly is the difference?

D. Manley, Hinsdale

A-In the U.S., long-grain white rice is the most popular choice, preferred over medium- and short-grain rice for its light, fluffy texture and separate grains.

Converted rice is a trademark of Uncle Ben`s Rice and refers to a process in which long-grain rice is steeped in water, then parboiled briefly under pressure while it is still in the husk. The brown husk is then removed for milling. Some of the starch is rinsed away during this parboiling process. Thus, when converted rice is cooked at home, the individual grains are firmer and more separate. It does, however, take slightly longer to cook, though this is just a matter of one to two minutes.

According to Nell Hopson, consumer affairs manager for Uncle Ben`s, the process of converting rice forces some nutrients, especially the B-complex vitamins, from the brown husk into the rice endosperm (the white portion) so it ends up being more nutritious.

However, by federal law, all white rice must be enriched to return any vitamins and minerals that are lost in the processing. So considered as an end product, converted rice actually doesn`t have more nutrients than other brands of long-grain white rice, although more of the vitamins come from a natural source.

As for other differences, Hopson also suggests that converted rice has a somewhat more pronounced rice taste because the husks impart a subtle nuance of flavor during the brief cooking process.

Both types of rice have their proponents, all of whom tend to be very vocal in expressing their preference. Though the end result will be somewhat different, long-grain white rice and converted rice usually are

interchangeable in recipes.

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If you have a food question, please send it to Cooks` Dialogue, Food Department, Chicago Tribune, 435 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, Ill. 60611. We cannot answer individual letters or recipe requests, but will print answers of general interest.